Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.
Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.
The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.
Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.
Find a collection of Contemporary prints, photography, paintings, sculptures and other art on 1stDibs.
$3,000
Princess /// Contemporary Street Pop Art Painting Grace Kelly Abstract Colorful
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
Artist: Jack Graves III (American, 1988-) Title: "Princess" Series: Eclecticism *Signed by Graves lower left. It is also signed, titled, and dated on verso Year: 2024 Medium: Origi...
Canvas, Paint, Acrylic
Airplane in landscape - landscape painting
Located in New York, NY
This beautiful painting by Jeroen Allart is part of his minimalist landscape and animal painting he did in his home country the Netherlands. 'A farm stands before you on the horizon....
Canvas, Oil
$545
Peculiar Bloom - Abstract Folk Art Inspired Mixed Media Painting on Raw Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Meredith Walker creates vibrant original artworks that merge the enduring charm of folk art with a contemporary sensibility shaped by nature, memory, and visual storytelling. Inspire...
Canvas, Acrylic, Gouache
Mourning On The Vine - Abstract Folk Art Inspired Mixed Media Painting on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Meredith Walker creates vibrant original artworks that merge the enduring charm of folk art with a contemporary sensibility shaped by nature, memory, and visual storytelling. Inspire...
Canvas, Acrylic, Gouache
$545
Sun No.5 - Abstract Folk Art Inspired Figurative Mixed Media Painting on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Meredith Walker creates vibrant original artworks that merge the enduring charm of folk art with a contemporary sensibility shaped by nature, memory, and visual storytelling. Inspire...
Canvas, Acrylic, Gouache
$2,082Sale Price|25% Off
The Sun Born Over and Over, Abstract Oil on Linen, Signed, 150x80 cm
Located in Silverthorne, CO
A soaring, dramatic, golden sunset flaming across the sky The golden light. The pink hues of hope. The planet we live on, all of us, spinning on its axis around our warm living sun ...
Linen, Oil
$1,100
Field Painting June 26 - Contemporary Landscape Painting White Flowers, 2025
Located in Kent, CT
In this contemporary landscape painting in oil on panel, a peaceful summer scene is set, beautifully capturing the idyllic feel of a field of wildflowers in late June. Signed, dated ...
Oil, Panel
$2,850
Unspoken Bond - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern Women
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist The...
Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$4,300
Soft Skies - Original Abstract Oceanscape Painting on Canvas with Gold Leaf
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Charlotte Elizabeth has been working with paint professionally for over fifteen years. Elizabeth’s training in theatre design preceded a busy career as a Theatrical Scenic Artist in ...
Gold Leaf
Drifting Between Light and Love - Contemporary Pool House Oil Painting
Located in DE
Lilly Muth's architectural paintings transport viewers on a visual journey to a different world, where imagination knows no bounds and the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur...
Canvas, Oil
With Girls on a Random Friday Night
Located in Zofingen, AG
With Girls on a Random Friday Night is about the quiet rituals that keep us close to ourselves and to each other. In a world obsessed with productivity, comparison, and always moving...
Canvas, Acrylic
$1,850
Ephemeral Tides - 21st Century, Contemporary, Landscapes, Modern City, Oil
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Painting for me is an experience, where we learn every day and unlearn what we’ve learnt, and also as a portal to connect to the past, present & future. I was inspired to create thi...
Canvas, Oil
Carmelized - Abstract Landscape Graffiti Inspired Mixed Media Artwork on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles artist Amber Goldhammer paints dramatic abstract compositions in acrylic on canvas featuring energetic brushstrokes. Goldhammer uses her contemporary paintings to express...
Canvas, Latex, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
$5,221
Large Contemporary Abstract Painting Gestural Mixed Media Mediterranean Light
By Ángel Celada
Located in FISTERRA, ES
Large contemporary abstract painting with gestural marks and layered mixed media textures inspired by Mediterranean light and atmosphere. This work by Ángel Celada develops an open ...
Oil, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Board, Wax Crayon, Wax
$890
Nine Skies, Geometric Interpretations Grid, Bauhaus Landscape Tiles, Color Field
Located in Barcelona, ES
“Nine Skies” by Natalia Roman is a contemporary geometric abstraction that evokes shifting atmospheres through a refined language of color and form. Organized in a rhythmic grid, eac...
Acrylic
Jack Straw - Abstract Minimal Color Beige Textured Mixed Media Artwork on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles artist Amber Goldhammer paints dramatic abstract compositions in acrylic on canvas featuring energetic brushstrokes. Goldhammer uses her contemporary paintings to express...
Canvas, Latex, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
Reminiscing
Located in Burlingame, CA
Elizabeth Geisler is best known for contemporary paintings of water that bridge realism and abstraction. At close range, her surfaces appear loose and ambiguous, but from a distance ...
Canvas, Acrylic
$2,650
Still Night - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Africa, Women
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist May...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$10,680
Love
Located in London, London
All custom charges are included in the final price agreed. XXL, large oil ,acrylic on canvas painting, expressionism. The item is located in central London, UK WILL BE SHIPPED ROLL...
Canvas, Acrylic, Oil
State of Mind 15 -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Women, Floral
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
The artist's expressive strokes, rendered with bold acrylics, bring to life a figurative portrait that speaks volumes about resilience and aspiration. The interplay of colors and tex...
Canvas, Acrylic
$4,153
Trees 2 June 15:42 - Modern Nature Painting, Landscape, Forest, Contemplativ
Located in Salzburg, AT
Robert Motelski's paintings are exceptional visions of nature, visions of space which surrounds us. They tell about being, fate and passing. They depend on the season of year, the ti...
Canvas, Oil
Yellow Lily - Abstract Acrylic Painting, Framed, Contemporary, 24x60 in
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This contemporary abstract acrylic painting features yellow lilies. Sandra Goldie’s artwork has been praised by one of Quebec’s leading abstract artists. Leopold Plotek described Go...
Canvas, Acrylic
Yellow Slash Abstract Acrylic Painting, Framed, Contemporary
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This contemporary abstract acrylic painting was inspired by nature. Sandra Goldie’s artwork has been praised by one of Quebec’s leading abstract artists. Leopold Plotek described th...
Canvas, Acrylic
TORRUB by Ramon Enrich - 59 In Wide Square Painting, Red Tones
By Ramon Enrich
Located in Paris, FR
TORRUB is a unique acrylic on canvas painting by contemporary artist Ramon Enrich, dimensions are 150 × 150 cm (59.1 × 59.1 in). Dimensions of the framed artwork are 154 cm x 154 cm ...
Canvas, Acrylic
Mediterranean Male Nude by Boat Sitges School Figurative Coastal Scene oil art
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Mediterranean Male Nude by Boat, Sitges School Figurative Coastal Scene Artist: F. Benítez Date: 2012 Medium: Oil on panel Support: Panel Dimensions (panel): 35 × 50 cm (13.8 × 19.7...
Oil
$2,373
Escape
Located in Zofingen, AG
This painting reflects a quiet moment of stepping away from the noise of everyday life. A solitary figure, partially hidden within soft greenery, sits in stillness with a cup of coff...
Canvas, Acrylic
Talking with You
Located in Zofingen, AG
This painting reflects a quiet moment shared by two people whose conversation seems untouched by time. They may be close friends or perhaps a couple — the kind of connection where wo...
Canvas, Acrylic
In My White Boots - Colorful Abstract Feminine Figurative Still Life Art
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Southern California native Courtney Simone seamlessly blends her passion for abstract art with the exploration of everyday beauty, resulting in exuberantly inspired abstract figurati...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
After the Game (Figurative Painting, Two Men in Athletic Uniforms by Mark Beard)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Academic style figurative portrait painting of a handsome young men "After the Game", By Mark Beard as Bruce Sargeant (pseudonym in homage to the fashion photographer, Bruce Weber, a...
Canvas, Oil
Between Stillness and Becoming - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Modern
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist The...
Canvas, Acrylic, Charcoal, Mixed Media
In Search of a Cerulean Sweater
Located in Zofingen, AG
In Search of a Cerulean Sweater plays with the idea of difference — of standing side by side while belonging to entirely different worlds. It reflects that quiet, often overlooked st...
Canvas, Acrylic
A Meal Alone with Oneself
Located in Zofingen, AG
A Meal Alone with Oneself is not about solitude, but about returning — to your own rhythm, your own desires, your own quiet center. In a world that constantly asks for more, faster, ...
Canvas, Acrylic
TROPIC 1 by Ramon Enrich - Landscape Painting, Earth Tones, Architecture
By Ramon Enrich
Located in Paris, FR
TROPIC 1 is a unique acrylic on paper mounted on wood painting by contemporary artist Ramon Enrich, dimensions are 94.5 × 134 cm (37.2 × 52.8 in). The artwork is signed, sold frame...
Wood, Paper, Acrylic
“Spiral movement”
Located in Zofingen, AG
Red fish move towards each other, forming a closed circle — a spiral — a space of eternal movement, interaction, equilibrium and balance. This is an image of cyclicality, reciprocity...
Canvas, Acrylic
Mistress of the Autumn Garden
Located in Zofingen, AG
In this painting, the artist creates the image of a woman as the keeper of the harvest, of space, and of the rhythms of nature. Her figure rises from the earth as naturally as the ap...
Canvas, Acrylic
$337Sale Price|25% Off
Africa Motifs 6 -21st Century Contemporary, Abstract Expressionism, Design
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...
Canvas, Acrylic
$337Sale Price|25% Off
Africa Motifs 2 -21st Century Contemporary, Abstract Expressionism, Design
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...
Canvas, Acrylic
Summer - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
Frank Dekkers Summer 140 x 200 cm (not framed) oil on canvas On the pictures we also show you the artist receiving the flowers on our opening of this exhibition september 3th 2023 i...
Cotton Canvas, Oil
New Girl in Town
Located in Zofingen, AG
New Girl in Town captures that delicate, almost imperceptible feeling of being slightly out of rhythm with the world around you — where everything seems settled, familiar, already un...
Canvas, Acrylic
Autumn Northsea 2 - 21st Century Contemporary landscape painting
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
Joost Verhagen Autumn Northsea 2 45 x 55 cm Acrylic paint on canvas We ship worldwide for free in a wooden crate, framed as seen on the pictures. Because of the constantly changing...
Canvas, Acrylic
Mountains 16 January 10:41 - Modern Nature Landscape Painting
Located in Salzburg, AT
Robert Motelski's paintings are exceptional visions of nature, visions of space which surrounds us. They tell about being, fate and passing. They depend on the season of year, the ti...
Canvas, Acrylic
When the time slowed for us - Contemporary Architecture House Oil Painting
Located in DE
Lilly Muth's architectural paintings transport viewers on a visual journey to a different world, where imagination knows no bounds and the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur...
Canvas, Oil
Yellow Smudge - Vibrant Yellow Tone Abstract Figurative Sculptural Wall Artwork
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Nebraka-based Jamie Burmeister is a sculptural artist known for his original artworks incorporating original small bronze figures, standing at just up to 4 inches tall. His unique fi...
Metal
Doughnut Chocolate Pocket Painting 209, original painting, still life
Located in Deddington, GB
Pocket Chocolate Doughnut (with Sugar Sprinkles) 209 (canvas size 5x5cm) is an original oil painting by Dani Humberstone as part of her Pocket Painting series featuring small scale r...
Canvas, Oil
"The Fish Bowl", Building Facade with Fish and Landscape Mixed Media
Located in Philadelphia, PA
"The Fish Bowl" is a one-of-a-kind piece created by Eustace Mamba. This original artwork made of oils and acrylics on sewn mixed media measures 12”h x 12”w. It ships with a gallery-...
Canvas, Paint, Oil, Other Medium, Fabric
Gale - Contemporary Abstract Acrylic Painting on Canvas, Framed, 32x26 in
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This contemporary abstract acrylic painting was inspired by nature. Sandra Goldie’s artwork has been praised by one of Quebec’s leading abstract artists. Leopold Plotek described th...
Canvas, Acrylic
$2,800
Blue Dots IV - Pink Tone Contemporary Abstract Figurative Sculptural Artwork
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Nebraka-based Jamie Burmeister is a sculptural artist known for his original artworks incorporating original small bronze figures, standing at just up to 4 inches tall. His unique fi...
Metal
With You - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern, Africa
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Tos...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$337Sale Price|25% Off
Africa Motifs 8 -21st Century Contemporary, Abstract Expressionism, Design
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...
Canvas, Acrylic
Homecoming - Bright Ethereal Green Abstract Painting, Signed, 50x50 CM
Located in Silverthorne, CO
My first painting back in the Italy Studio, where the nature around me is still veiled by winter, but the tiny buds on the tree branches and the primrose carpeting the forest floor a...
Oil
Pink Ascension Beyond The Moon & Stars
By Hunt Slonem
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Hunt Slonem, American, included in 250+ museum collections Unique oil on canvas painting, artist's antique frame, signed and dated verso Inspired by nature and his 60 pet birds, Hu...
Gold Leaf
Gentle Shores - Original Abstract Oceanscape Painting on Canvas with Gold Leaf
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Charlotte Elizabeth has been working with paint professionally for over fifteen years. Elizabeth’s training in theatre design preceded a busy career as a Theatrical Scenic Artist in ...
Gold Leaf
$1,311
Landscape 20 - 21st Century Contemporary Impressionistic Landscape Painting
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
Frank Dekkers Landscape 20 15 x 20 cm (framed, included in price 20 x 25 cm) oil on Panel About the artist: Frank Dekkers, an outdoor painter, but not a "square painter" as we know...
Oil, Wood Panel
Orange Sky (Skyscape, Warm, Glowing, Vibrant, Dreamy, Sun, Rays, Clouds)
By Annieo Klaas
Located in Kansas City, MO
Annieo Klaas Orange Sky 2026 Oil on Canvas Size: 24 x 24 inches (60.96 × 60.96 cm) Signed and titled verso COA included *On stretcher frame, gallery-wrapped - ready to hang In Whe...
Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars
$1,311
Landscape 07 - 21st Century Contemporary Impressionistic Landscape Painting
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
Frank Dekkers Landscape 07 15 x 20 cm (framed, included in price 20 x 25 cm) oil on Panel About the artist: Frank Dekkers, an outdoor painter, but not a "square painter" as we know...
Oil, Wood Panel
Spill - Framed Contemporary Abstract Painting in White, Red, Blue, Yellow, Green
Located in Gilroy, CA
Spill is an intricately layered abstract painting by Deanna Schuerbeke. She builds expressive works through layers of colors, texture, and mark-making that tread the line of chaos an...
Oil
South Head, February, Original painting, Contemporary artist
Located in Deddington, GB
An expressive palette knife oil painting of South Head hill, painted en plein air in the Peak District . The thick, textured application of paint brings the landscape to life. The pa...
Oil, Board
In The Presence of Fragrant Bliss - Abstract Landscape Mixed Media Art on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles artist Amber Goldhammer paints dramatic abstract compositions in acrylic on canvas featuring energetic brushstrokes. Goldhammer uses her contemporary paintings to express...
Canvas, Latex, Ink, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
$9,500
Joy
By Hunt Slonem
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Hunt Slonem, American, included in 250+ museum collections Unique oil on wood painting, artist's antique frame, signed and dated verso Inspired by nature and his 60 pet birds, Hunt...
Oil, Wood Panel
Strawberry Ruby Red Pocket Painting 202, original painting, still life
Located in Deddington, GB
Pocket Ruby Red Strawberry 202 (canvas size 5x5cm) is an original oil painting by Dani Humberstone as part of her Pocket Painting series featuring small scale realistic oil paintings...
Canvas, Oil
The artist and activist is the subject of a new show at Washington, D.C.'s National Gallery of Art.
Manhattan's Acquavella Galleries is showing a group of the artist's monumental works that have never been seen together.
Koloman Moser smashed the conservative conventions of art and design in fin-de-siècle Vienna. On the 100th anniversary of his death, the Austrian designer is being celebrated for his radically modern creations.